TOO Many Of Our Lives’ Most Beautiful Pursuits Are Being Crushed, Let's Make Sure Aviation Isn't One Of Them

Analysis/Commentary/Opinion By James R. Campbell, ANN CEO/Editor-In-Chief/Trouble-Maker

“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right
to tell people what they do not want to hear.”
-- George Orwell 

A few nights ago, my wife Masako, (who, among many other things, is also a symphony-class Harpist) dragged me to my first symphony since I’d been a youngster. It started out as a “Honey-Do” mission that I was actually happy to undertake (OK… kinda/sorta) in appreciation/payback/retribution for all the aero-centric events I had invited/conned/dragged her to… but it took only a few minutes for the Jacksonville Symphony and its guest conductor (a colleague of my wife's and a most talented man) to win me over.

I had forgotten how incredibly complex these performances are, and how incredibly beautiful they become when executed by passionate people with expertise and a love for their craft. The intricacies of the symphony, the masterful coordination of its conductor, and the need to ‘unify’ nearly 100 people with seamless perfection -- both in terms of timing, as well as the content of the music itself, was nearly as entertaining as the beauty of the melodies… and after an intermission that came way too soon, I could not help but reflect and thereupon draw some comparisons between what I was experiencing (and enjoying)… and my life in aviation.

As I understand it, professional symphonies are having a tough time staying alive -- their audience is aging, they get only a smattering of the PR and attention they deserve, are expensive undertakings, and yet are none-the-less supported (sometimes barely), by a passionate group of advocates (often of the elder generation) whose love for their craft seems inexplicable to those not properly exposed to the wonders of such indisputable arts.

Kinda like aviation... no?

Yeah -- Exactly.

While I promised a bit of a pitch to you today, to sell you on the first of a series of programs we’ll be undertaking to support and build a bigger and better ANN… among SO MANY OTHER things, I’ve decided that I want to further substantiate and validate our agenda, FIRST.

You see, despite what much of the aviation world wants to admit (especially amongst our so-called leadership), we are (at present) a dying breed… and yet that state of affairs STUNS ME to the core. While I realize that I am among the passionately “converted,” in all of my experiences with a number of disparate activities, occupations, avocations and pursuits; I have a hard time conjuring up anything, that I’m aware of, that can equate to aviation in terms of enrichment, satisfaction, potential, value, challenge, excitement, utility and so much more.

Besides, what could possibly be cooler than being a pilot?

Nothing, I tell you… not a damned thing.

Throughout my life, I have been privileged to see, do, participate in, affect, visit and experience an extraordinary variety of things… but aviation has been the single most compelling aspect of my life -- bar none -- despite a number of aero-heartaches along the way (some of them self-inflicted).

So… while I want to make it clear that I know that much of aviation is on life-support and that I believe that this needs to be shouted from the roof-tops, to motivate the Doubting Thomases, I have to tell you that if there is a world more ripe for a resurgence than general and sport aviation (and deserving of same), I simply don’t what it is.

Get this… I believe, passionately, that if we play our cards right, the best days of aviation could be in our FUTURE.

Really.

NO Bravo-Sierra.

And yet… here we sit… watching one of the most exciting pursuits known to man, swirl the drain… while watching too many of the power-elite in aviation cluck their tongues and go about their business as if the sky ISN’T falling (while none-the-less imploring you to donate to their latest boondoggle)… and damn it, the sky IS falling!

That being the case, I noted a few issues (but just a few of so many… darn it) that I wanted to address with the “Second Half” of my life (at age 57, I am nothing, if not optimistic… grin).

Let’s iterate some known issues that appear to be barring a positive future for the Aero-World:

• Aviation has become far too expensive (DUH!).
• The economy has sucked for a long time… making more expensive pursuits like aviation far less attractive.
• The state of aviation infrastructure is suffering… especially Mom and Pop aero-businesses, small airports and FBOs.
• The FAA is a brutally inefficient and uncaring agency staffed, primarily, by government drones who have taken on positions of responsibility and policy-making.
• FAA staff morale among the ‘real aviators’ in its organization is really poor.
• The rest of our government is at best, aero-ignorant and at worst, anti-aviation (especially the White House).
• Aviation has become far more complex and restrictive.
• Aviation Innovation has slowed dramatically.
• The Pilot population is declining at a drastic, unsustainable, rate.
• Aviation continues to receive poor ‘press’ and is often viewed poorly by the General Public.
• Today’s aero-decision makers are short on imagination, loathe to suggest radical and innovative fixes, and seem totally bound to the worst precept in aviation—the concept of doing things because “...that’s the way we’ve always done it.”
• Our community is too white, too male, too old and way too unwilling to embrace todays’ modes of outreach to seek new blood.
• Aviation safety is not all it could be.
• The aviation world’s political realities are convoluted and often ineffective—many aero-associations are a joke.
• Aviation interests are not taken seriously (by the outside world) as compared to a host of other interests—noise, ecology, class politics, you name it.
• Aviation gets pushed around easily… and does little to prevent it. In other words, we eschew plain-speaking and exhibit cowardice or ignorance with our silence and inactivity.
• The aviation world is disorganized, disenfranchised, and represents itself VERY poorly to the world at large.
• Much of the aviation media is in the pockets of their advertisers, and yields only minimal amounts of REAL editorial.
• There are some real bad apples out in the aviation business… and its the dirty little secret that so few are willing to deal with… and those that are, are often crushed by those who demand their silence (we call that the Cirrus Conundrum).
• Much of aviation, from its gut, doesn’t see a positive future for aviation… and that attitude is having a significant, if subliminal, debilitating effect on us all.
• We need a new generation of airframes, engines, cockpits, airports, and aviation businesses to guarantee a proper future ourselves and our kids.
• Aviation has (mostly) lost its imagination and sense of wonder with all we have at our disposal.

Whew... That’s just a short list of the issues we face… and are but a small sample of the problems we MUST solve if aviation is to have a future worth fighting for. As noted a few days ago, I’m throwing “all in” from here on out with aggressive, radical (this is NOT a dirty word, folks… and I embrace it) and innovative ideas to remaking my own businesses, my programs, and mostly, to upgrade the outreach I intend to undertake -- from here on out, until I can fight no more.

I’m cleaning house… hell, I’m burning the damned thing down, and working to radically design and upgrade ANN, our book company and offerings, and other business pursuits… because unless I have a healthy business foundation to work from, I’m wasting my time. And while ANN started out doing something incredibly radical -- even as everyone told us that we were being idiots (until they were forced to copy us many years later… and NOT at all well, either), and pretty much changed the face of aero-information and communication long before anyone else, it’s NOW time to raise the bar to an astounding height and seek solutions and programs that are completely original -- and in keeping with the realities of today’s world.

Yes, folks… to quote Monty Python, it’s now time for ‘something completely different…’ and that is exactly what’s on our game plan.

We’re also going to be smarter (based on painful lessons) with how we do this… and (among other things) seek IP protection for our original programs and works… not so much to prevent people from copying us again… but to keep them from screwing up what we consider to be good ideas that will need strong and serious effort/study/support to make work.

There IS a solid plan coming together here… but it is one that is governed, principally, by one cardinal rule… THAT NO PLAN SURVIVES CONTACT WITH REALITY -- and that we must be ready, willing, and able to adjust to what we learn as well as what the industry demands of us as we go forward.

As noted, we’re hard at work on an EXTRAORDINARY redesign of the ANN and Aero-TV sites that will someday be as much a pivotal effort as ANN was when we first started. Part of that is a new reality -- supported by an equally new generation of tools that we’ll give YOU, our readers, viewers, listeners and supporters what YOU need to allow you to be a vocal part of a more informed and more active community. And as we promised before, the final version of this new reality for ANN should be truly revolutionary—just as we were many years ago. It won't be easy... and it may sound arrogant to suggest that we can do these revolutionary things... but you must give us credit for one simple fact -- we've done it before.

There’s more… much more… ANN and Aero-TV are actively involved in getting the go-ahead for demos for at least two unique, aviation-centric, reality television programs – either of which we believe to have incredible potential to show the public how extraordinary the aero-world really is… and should be fun to produce and watch, as well. Best of all, it’s a chance to show aviation off in some new ways… and I can’t tell you how excited we are about that.

We’re going to try to take an aggressive role in helping today’s aviation businesses learn to be more successful and professional, to undertake better marketing and be true aviation professionals—we’ve been complaining about this issue for a long time and in addition to taking our own advice, we plan to play a strong role in improving our lot. The general state of aero-business skills and professionalism is abysmal, and we want to supply some of the requisite experience and guidance in order to turn that sad state of affairs around.

We want to build new relationships with the industry… we want to reach out to build solid trusting partnerships with talented people, groups, companies and affiliated efforts… to support them aggressively and to enhance the community we want to surround ourselves with… and to make EVERY SINGLE ONE of them valuable… whether they be the newest student pilot with a desire to do something cool, or the most powerful aero-biz that wants a more prosperous future… we want to affect new synergies with cooperation, mutual support, progress -- and ultimately, to show the world what we can do and how powerful we are when we act as one united aero-community.

There are other industries and movements in the world, outside of aviation, that have dealt with serious problems -- and have either triumphed or made serious progress towards their goals… and while some of them may not fit everyone’s political ideologies, we should study them exhaustively… look at the work and effectiveness of such diverse groups as the NRA, various ECO organizations, as well as a number of political efforts, and be prepared to be awed, inspired and to then LEARN from them… You may not like them, but you can’t argue that there are some groups out there kicking some serious ass and proving to be fairly (if not outrageously) effective.

We’ve got to learn to be our own best advocates and NOT our own worst enemies. Aviation is shamefully ineffective at promoting itself, or telling the world how incredibly rich, and exciting, and valuable our industry/community is and fails abysmally in selling ourselves to those who might have the faintest possibility of joining us.

It takes little or NO talent to preach to the choir, folks… and I’m sick and tired of watching so many aero-buffoons do just that while they pat themselves on the back just to feel good and earn their next pointless award.

There is a whole new world of social media, and other communication outlets/concepts, that are changing whole portions of the globe along with entire aspects of our societies. Yet, God help us, I have yet to see but a handful of aviation entities understand that fact and start to properly employ these revolutionary, game-changing tools.

Folks… because of some of the work I’ve done with XPRIZE and other amazing organizations, I’ve met, even befriended, some of the leaders of these revolutions… and I have learned to listen to them with complete attention (yes, I shut up and LISTEN… I CAN do that), to the point where I not only believe I am developing some solid insights as to how to properly employ those tools, but to know where the next revolutions in these disciplines are likely to come from.

We HAVE to learn and embrace them all… and to be leaders in their implementation… otherwise the next sound you hear will not be the cheerful roar of a mighty Lycoming, but yet another bulldozer turning your local airport into a Walmart.

We have some truly radical ideas about supporting and identifying a new generation of aviation leaders… so very much needed right now because this community has lost (or nearly destroyed – Look what Cirrus did to Alan Klapmeier…) some very good leaders over the past few years and too much of what remains behind is sub-par. We need to identify who our real leaders are, provide them with/or support a platform from which to lead, and build new tools for outreach to allow them to be clearly in touch with enough of the industry to get a genuine feel for what needs to be done as we, collectively, remake the future.

We are dusting off the Aviation Innovation Conference project and are undertaking specific actions to bring them (yes... plural) to reality. We want to help lead the industry in dissecting and defining our biggest problems and issues… and then to find solid solution paths by which to defeat them. And most of all, we’re going to take big radical steps into OUR future… just like we did nearly 20 years ago… and this time, instead of waiting for the industry to try and catch up, we’re going to lead as aggressively as we dare (while being sure to allow for, and provide opportunities, for you all to hear from others with solid ideas for changing our fortunes)… with the aid and support of a magnificent group of friends, advisors, and truly aero-centric people.

Got ideas?

Got concerns?

Got a passion for aviation that just won’t quit and a willingness to get INVOLVED and get the hell off the sidelines?

Care to join us?

I hope you do… we’ll follow up shortly.

In the meantime, we have a program to introduce in the next day or two and hope you’ll support what we’ll need to do to build the kind of future we dream of… for flyers the world over.

Blues Skies…
Jim Campbell, ANN CEO-Editor-In-Chief/Rabble Rouser/Professional Pain In The Ass

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BTW… if you want a sneak-peak at one of our first offerings, check out www.kindredspirit.com… and be sure to check out the Premier edition of “Beyond The Blue.”

FMI: jim@aero-news.net, Where Do You Think ANN Should Go From Here?, www.kindredspirit.com, http://kindredspirit.com/collections/home/products/beyond-the-blue-premier-edition